Tuesday, December 25, 2007
MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone! We love and miss you all!! Thank you all for the gifts. We love them! :)
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Here are the things that Gretchen wanted for Christmas: a guitar, a flat surface stove, and a microphone to record vocals on the computer (so she can start recording her own songs).
By Corey's wrapping, can you guess what he got her?? :)
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Corey and Zach went shopping the other day to get one more gift. When they came home, Corey put what he bought in a box and went upstairs where Gretchen was. He asked for the wrapping paper, scissors and tape. Gretchen said, "Well, since you have another gift that I can open on Christmas morning, are you sure you just don't want to give it to me now?". It didn't take much thought for Corey to say, "Yes". He is always anxious to give his gifts to Gretchen. Plus, it saved him from wrapping it (Corey isn't the BEST wrapper, lol).
He gave Gretchen a Garmin StreetPilot (GPS) for the car. Now, some of you may be laughing thinking that a "woman needs it" but Corey really likes this gift too. You can plug in addresses to save and it can tell you h0w to get there (directing you each step of the way), how fast you're going, how many miles to your destination, averages of almost everything (speed, miles per hour, etc) AND you can look up things in the area like restaurants, lodging, entertainment, intersections, etc. Gretchen wasn't expecting him to get that for her but she and him are both glad that he did. Wasn't that so sweet? :)
Thursday, December 06, 2007
We went on a marriage treat over the weekend in Charleston called "A Weekend To Remember". Originally we weren't planning on leaving Zach with anyone and just going to the day sessions but God worked it out so that we could stay in the hotel and Zach was taken care of. Some friends of ours offered to keep Zach for the whole weekend. We hope someday we'll be able to re-pay the favor.
It was nice to have a weekend of just the two of us but we did miss Zach terribly by Sunday evening. We were able to go out on a date Saturday night and just spend the weekend talking and working on "us" with NO distractions. We bought several books to keep us motivated and even bought a "Couples Series" with hopes to start a home bible study of couples at our house. They also had a game called "Spoueology", which looks like a lot of fun, that we bought. We're hoping to have a few couples over soon just to play that game.
This week has been pretty busy. We have Zach's school "Christmas program" tonight and then our church's "Christmas play" this Sunday. It's a pretty busy week.
Friday, November 16, 2007
Zach had a really good birthday party turn-out. There were 17 or 18 kids plus their parents that showed up. It was a lot of fun!
Gretchen's parents left 2 days after the party. Her mom got sick while she was down here and now Gretchen is sick. She woke up with a sore throat last Thursday and then came the cough on Sunday. That's all she has been doing since Sunday. It got so bad that she hasn't been able to sleep the past 2 nights. She went to the doctor yesterday. The doctor says that she thinks Gretchen has a sinus infection that is turning bronchial (sp?). So, she is on an antibiotic & a cough suppressant. You should see these pills. They are like "Horse" pills.
Corey had shut-down week last week. He worked almost 80 hours in 6 days. He got a little sick towards the end of the shut-down. He's coughing some but not as much as Gretchen. Hopefully he won't get what she has.
We set up our Christmas tree yesterday. Gretchen's parents are coming down for Thanksgiving and we want to have our Christmas decorations already up so we can just relax all weekend. Plus, this will be the last time we see them until we go to Hawaii in January.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
The past couple of months have seem to flown by. Our lives has been extremely busy. Anytime that we do have, we either are trying to do something as just a family or just want to relax.
Zach's birthday is coming up and we should have a lot of fun. A lot of his friends are going to be there, both from school and church. Gretchen's parents will be visiting for the weekend. We're looking forward to them coming down and visiting. Gretchen's even gotten some Christmas shopping done to send back with her parents. She's hoping to get it all done by the end of November, at least for our extended family, but she can't until she finishes getting the rest of the Christmas lists.
The next couple of days will probably go by quick. Gretchen always likes to clean and organize before her parents come down. So, that will be her goal along with running all the errands for Zach's birthday party. Corey's only responsibility is helping Gretchen with Zach and picking her parents up from the airport. :)
We just had our pictures done on Sunday along with Zach's pictures. We'll let you all see them once we get them. :)
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Corey has been working hard. He's been working about 50 hours a week. Although, Gretchen has been so busy with teaching at Zach's school, worship team practice, bible studies, making food for the bible studies, working with Zach, cleaning the house, paying the bills, and filling in at church for the pianist that she doesn't even notice how many hours he works sometimes, even though she still misses him when he's gone. :)
We have found time to play our Nintendo Wii, a lot. We LOVE playing it. You can make your own characters called "Mi"'s. Let's see if you can guess from the pictures which one is suppose to be who. Can you tell? (these pictures were taken on the TV, that's why they aren't very clear)All three of us love to play tennis and bowling. Both Corey and Gretchen have "pro" status for both of them. We like to compete against each other. We're hoping to get hooked up to the Internet with it soon. Both of our arms have been hurting the past day or so from playing it so much. It's definitely an interactive game. LOL
We're still trying to have a baby. No news right now. Gretchen is already picturing how to decorate the "nursery", which right now is Zach's room. Gretchen is hoping to move Zach into the guest bedroom and make Zach's room a nursery. She's hoping we'll be able to store the bunkbed so that we can use it in the future. Only time will tell what will happen. :)
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Last Friday was Corey's 32nd Birthday. He had to work but Gretchen arranged for a friend to keep Zach so that when he came home all we had to do was get ready and go out, just to two of us. Unfortunately, he got out of work a little earlier than Gretchen expected and beat her home. She didn't tell him where she was until she got home. He asked where Zach was and she told him that he was with Kim and her 2 girls.
Gretchen was planning on taking him to a movie and dinner. We got ready and went to see "Bourne Ultimatum". We had just finished watching "Bourne Identity" and "Bourne Supremacy" the week before. We really wanted to see the sequel. We think "Bourne Ultimatum" is the best. It's probably one of the best movies we've seen in a while.
Corey wasn't real hungry after the movie and he missed Zach. So, we picked Zach up and went to Chik F'ila and went home. Zach had a card for him and we had a message cookie for him when we got home.
We've made it a tradition in our family that if someone's birthday falls on a Friday or Monday that we make it a "Birthday Weekend". So, Corey got spoiled all weekend..... not that he doesn't all the other weekends also. Sunday, we just spent time playing games together all day which was a lot of fun.
Sunday, August 05, 2007
Gretchen's parents came down to see us last Thursday. They had a chance to look at some houses that they were interested in. They are "thinking" about moving down here in 2 to 5 years, after Gretchen's mom is able to retire. Then on Friday, Corey and Gretchen's Dad left to go to Promise Keepers.
As soon as the guys left for PK, Gretchen, her mom and Zach went shopping. They stopped and got milkshakes and rented a movie. They ordered in pizza while they watched a movie. Then, they all got in Gretchen's bed and went to sleep early. The next morning they went to Walmart to do some more shopping and get some donuts for breakfast.
The guys had a good time being by themselves, too. They had some really good talks to and from the Center. They had to drive 2 hours to where PK was. They went to the conference Friday evening and then back to the hotel where they stayed. They went back to the conference the following morning and then came home. They both had a REALLY good time together. Corey definitely wants to go back to PK with Gretchen's Dad again. We think Gretchen's Dad loves being called "Dad" by Corey.
It's always good to see Gretchen's parents but it's definitely especially good that they spoil us by taking us out to eat. Of course, we'll probably do that to Zach when he gets married too. :)
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Gretchen started painting the master bedroom on Friday morning. She painted all day Friday, part of Saturday and part of Sunday. Corey helped her finish a little bit on the last wall but otherwise she did everything by herself. She taped everything off, painted all the trim, and painted 2 coats over the dark blue. It was a tough job but it's FINALLY done. After the picture was taken, she dusted everything in the room, went through any and all junk that was on the floor, went through the filing cabinet and clothes that don't get worn anymore. The room looks great. The picture is the new color that was painted on over the weekend.
Corey has been working hard on the garage all weekend. He got done all the dry walling and sanding. Then, Gretchen helped him paint the garage yesterday (including the ceiling). Corey says he wants to go back over some of it just to make sure it's got a thick coat of paint on it but after that, the hardest part will be done. Next will be putting fluorescent lights in. That's probably the last of what the money will allow us to do for right now. Corey also wants to put flooring in, a base board and some shelving in it, which should ultimately complete it, but that may not happen until fall or even next year.
You would think we were doing "spring cleaning" right now. Both Corey and Gretchen have been going through EVERYTHING and are in this "THROW OUT" mood. lol We're both just sick of accumulating "junk". Gretchen is going to try to sell some of the stuff on ebay or craigslist. She's done a good job of making some money in the past doing that. :)
Monday, July 16, 2007
This summer has been.... interesting. After going to Maryland, we had to go to Missouri. It wasn't exactly the most pleasant trip for us so we'll skip telling that part of our summer.
Even though the summer didn't start off being the best, it's turned out to be a pretty good summer. We've been going to a bible study called "the TRUTH project". It's a video series that asks you very logical questions to get you to think WHY you believe what you believe and HOW you know what you believe is true. It's VERY good! It's also been nice being around our friends so much. We've really been enjoying the fellowship as well as the videos.
Gretchen started giving piano lessons about a month ago. She's got 2 students that she really enjoys giving piano lessons to. She's also beginning to give Zach some lessons, though it's not every week. This week she's teaching at Vacation Bible School. She's teaching 3rd and 4th graders. Plus, she's going to start teaching at Zach's school this year.
For the fourth of July, we sat in the back of the truck on our "beach chairs" in a parking lot and watched them. We had so much fun just sitting there as a family watching them together. It was our first year together as a family b/c last year Zach was with Gretchen's parents. So, it was pretty special.
We've been going to the beach a lot this summer. We both LOVE the beach. We only go once a week since Corey works Monday-Friday now. We usually go Saturday morning when the park opens before most of the people get there. Then, we stop and get milkshakes on the way home. It's become a nice family tradition. We don't get to do it EVERY Saturday, but most Saturdays.
We're currently working on finishing the garage and planning on painting our master bedroom. Corey painted it a navy blue color and Gretchen doesn't like it and doesn't think it matches the decor of the room. So.... Gretchen has taken it on as HER project to paint the room while Corey's project is the garage. Gretchen's hoping to get the painting done before her parents come down the first weekend in August.
Friday, June 01, 2007
It's been 3 days since we've been home from Maryland and we are back on the road to Missouri. We were originally planning on going out there the first week of July but Corey's grandfather passed today. So, we decided to go out now instead. Fortunately, we have awesome friends who are watching the house and cats for us. :)
It's pretty hard to pack in one night for one week. We actually did it, though. Corey is driving so hopefully Gretchen can sleep some. So, we're off..... yet again. We traveled 8 hours to Maryland and 8 hours back. We're traveling 12 hours to Missouri and 12 hours back. We'll let you know when we get back. :)
Last weekend, we made a trip to visit Gretchen's side of the family. We had a really nice time. We got to see Gretchen's grandmother, Aunt's and Uncle, cousins, her brother & Sister-in-law and our 2 nieces. We met our one niece for the first time. She's only 6 months old. Corey actually held her, too. It was really good to see everyone, especially since we only get to see everyone once a year. Hopefully some people will come down to visit us. :)
We also got to see Zach's Aunt Janet. She didn't really know Corey, so it was nice that she got at least a glimpse of who Corey is. It sounds like she might come down to visit sometime, which will be really good for Zach. :)
We were at Toys R Us with Gretchen's parents and ran into a friend of Gretchen's, Elesha. She really liked seeing her and her son, Elijah. Then, we went over to one of Gretchen's friend's house, Vanessa. All in all, we had a really nice time. There was only two people that Gretchen wanted to see that she didn't get to see.
While it's always nice to visit family, it's even better to be back home.... especially in our own bed! Our next trip will be even longer.... a 12 hour trip to Missouri to visit Corey's family. Then, we're done traveling for the rest of the year..... at least we think. :)
Monday, May 21, 2007
Saturday, Gretchen & Zach met up with some of Gretchen's friends from church up in MD. They were down on vacation. So, we met up with them downtown and had lunch. We walked around quite a bit and tried to show them around downtown, even though Gretchen isn't real familiar with it. Then, they came back to our house and we got to fellowship for the evening. It was such a nice evening.
When we went to put Zach to bed, he was really cranky and wouldn't listen (which is NOT like him at all). He felt really hot. So, we got the thermometer out. The first reading said 102.3 F & the second reading said 102.8 F. Both of us were really concerned about him. Gretchen was suppose to lead worship at church the next day but had to call the Pastor and tell him that she couldn't be there since it was the one Sunday Corey had to work. The Pastor was very understanding, though.
Zach ended up waking up a couple hours later, he was crying & couldn't tell you what was wrong. We think he was just hurting all over & so tired, especially from a busy day. Gretchen was up with him until 2:30 AM. He finally went to sleep for good for the night. The next day, his fever was down to 100.5. Gretchen took him to McDonald's for his favorite pancakes and then had to go to Walmart for groceries. He seemed in a pretty good mood when we got home. He played his video games for a little bit. Then, Corey came home & wanted to go out to eat. While we were out, Zach just looked really tired. We could tell he was sick b/c he didn't eat but one bite of his mac & cheese and when we asked if he wanted dessert he said "NO". That's when you know kids are sick.
He's feeling better today. His fever is probably down to 99. He's developed a cough, now. Gretchen gave him some medicine and he seems to be fine now. We'll see how he does the rest of the day. Keep him in your prayers! :)
Monday, May 14, 2007
Corey & Zach made it very special for Gretchen for Mother's Day. They made all these different cards with different messages in them and put them around the house. Then, when Gretchen walked downstairs to the kitchen where they were lined up across the kitchen counter and stove and they spelled out "Happy Mother's Day". Gretchen was so surprised and loved it so much. She definitely felt appreciated.
Corey & Gretchen, together called his mom & step-mom, and Gretchen's mom to wish them a Happy Mother's Day and to let them all know that we love & appreciate them.
Our heart goes out to those who lost their Mother, which I'm sure made the day hard for them. Our heart also goes out to those Mother's who have lost their children and to those Mother's who didn't hear from their children on this special day. We hope you all still had a Happy Mother's Day!
Sunday, May 06, 2007
This weekend, we spent all day Saturday painting our living and dining room. We also picked out drapes and rods for the rooms as well. We actually started painting Friday night. We had decided to paint the room a deep gold color. When we started painting, it was a bright school bus color. Corey was REALLY worried about it. He said that he only wanted to paint one wall and then see how it looked in the morning. He said that if he liked it, he would never question Gretchen's judgement regarding paint again. Well, he likes it.
After we got done painting the walls and finishing the trim, we went out to eat and also went and got rods and curtains for the room. Today, we put the rug that was upstairs, downstairs under the dining room table. We really like downstairs now. It's VERY modern but comfortable. We hope everyone will get a chance to see it sometime. :)
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Zach went to the chiropractor for the first time. We both go pretty regular whenever we need to. Zach always goes with us. So, he was pretty excited when it was his turn. They took x-rays of his spine and then made him lay on the table. He was really excited until the Doctor came in and started "cracking" his back and neck. Then, he just stopped talking. He looked at the Doctor with some confusion. The Doctor was really good with him but Zach didn't look too sure about it. When he got done, he talked the nurses' ears off. They gave him yet another sticker after giving him 2 when we had arrived.
The Doctor said that he has a lean in his spine but that it could be from how he was standing. Although, he doesn't think so. So, he will be going over the "report" with Gretchen tomorrow morning and then adjusting Zach again.... and hopefully Gretchen too. :)
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Gretchen's parents came down to visit with us for the weekend. It was a fun visit. The weekend seemed to go by so fast but it was very relaxing. Everytime Gretchen's parents come down to visit they start to like the area more and more. We're hoping they'll move down here within the next couple of years. They have a very close and special relationship with Zach, since Gretchen did live with them for the first 2 years of Zachariah's life. They are very special to Zach, too. He cried when we got home and he realized that they weren't coming back to our house.
They seemed to really enjoy their visit. Gretchen likes to cook for them when they come down but there are a few places that they really like to eat at that they don't have where they live. So, we go to their favorite places when they are down here. They LOVE our couch. Gretchen's Dad actually fell asleep on it. Corey calls it the "George Foreman" couch because when you sit or lay on it, it knocks you out. lol
Gretchen started back at the gym today. It's been about 3 weeks since she's been. She hasn't been watching what she's been eating (and she's been loving it). Although, she doesn't love the weight that comes with eating what she wants. So, she's back on her diet and back in the gym.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Gretchen has gained a little bit of weight recently, no more than 6 or 7 lbs (she thinks). So, she's going to go back on her "diet" and start at the gym next week. Her parents are coming down to visit us this weekend, so she can't start this weekend.
Gretchen is thinking about teaching at Zach's school next year. It's really an ideal job for her. She'd be there during the same hours Zach is AND we would only have to pay 50% of the tuition fee for Zach. Plus, the kids are so sweet at the school. The teachers are really nice too.
Gretchen has been cleaning and putting stuff on ebay to sell. It's a great way to get rid of our stuff and make a little extra money. :) She's been trying to figure out how to use some of the software on our computer. We can record from our cable on our computer. She's been recording the "Planet Earth" series. She's been working on taking the commercials out so we can burn them to DVD's. Now, we just need some blank DVD's.... time to go to Walmart. :)
Monday, April 16, 2007
Gretchen was gone this past weekend to go to the Beth Moore Conference. She left Thursday afternoon and came back Saturday afternoon. She had a great time. She loved having a girls' weekend with NO children. They stayed up late, went swimming, went shopping, ate and of course enjoyed the Beth Moore conference. They had an awesome time worshipping God with 18,000 other women. It's almost a glimpse of what heaven will be like. Just seeing all those women raising their hands and singing to God. It was an amazing sight.
She missed Corey and Zach a lot. What mother and wife wouldn't miss their family.? It's always good to get away from the family for a couple of days. It's so important for women to spend time AWAY from their children, for those who are always with them. It's also healthy for the children. Of course, Zach didn't mind too much. He got Corey all to himself. :) Gretchen really didn't want to leave at first b/c she knew how much she would miss both of them but Mothers often have to force themselves away in order to get the time they need for themselves, no matter how much they know they'll miss their family.
God was definitely at work at the conference. Ten people became christians (dedicated their life to Christ). Beth Moore is so funny and really motivating. She really digs into scripture and teaches you the greek words from the original text of the Bible. Corey & Gretchen both LOVE that kind of teaching.
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